New
New
Year 9

German musicians: present tense open questions, word order

I can ask and answer open questions about German musicians using flexible word order, and I can complete extended activities describing a favourite person in the present tense.

New
New
Year 9

German musicians: present tense open questions, word order

I can ask and answer open questions about German musicians using flexible word order, and I can complete extended activities describing a favourite person in the present tense.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. Open questions start with a question word (e.g., 'wo', 'wie', 'warum') and use verb-subject word order.
  2. It’s important to be very confident with question words to understand information and ask questions.
  3. German sentences can start with any other element (other than the subject) to emphasise it and then the verb second.
  4. Present tense verbs plus the adverb 'gern' (gladly) say what we like doing. As all adverbs, it can start a sentence.

Keywords

  • Open question - question starting with a wh- word that has more information in the answer than yes/no

  • Word order two (WO2) - inverts the subject and verb in a sentence; any element can appear at the start of a German sentence to trigger this inversion

  • Gern - adverb meaning 'gladly', 'like to'

Common misconception

German and English word order are the same.

English mostly uses subject-verb word order and time phrases appear most naturally at the end of phrases. German word order is much more variable. Any element (subject, object, time-manner-location adverb) can start a German sentence.


To help you plan your year 9 German lesson on: German musicians: present tense open questions, word order, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

The German music scene is well worth exploring further. Teachers may want to direct students to find out more about one of the singers or bands featured in this lesson or steer them towards their own favourite German-speaking musicians.
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Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which are adverbs of manner?

Correct answer: allein
Correct answer: besser
dort
hier
jetzt

Q2.
Match the German and English.

Correct Answer:Abend (m),evening

evening

Correct Answer:Geschichte (f),story, history

story, history

Correct Answer:Gitarre (f),guitar

guitar

Correct Answer:Kultur (f),culture

culture

Correct Answer:Lied (nt),song

song

Correct Answer:Ziel (nt),destination, goal

destination, goal

Q3.
Match the German and English.

Correct Answer:beschreiben,to describe, describing

to describe, describing

Correct Answer:erreichen,to reach, achieve

to reach, achieve

Correct Answer:leben,to live, living

to live, living

Correct Answer:mischen,to mix, mixing

to mix, mixing

Correct Answer:reden,to talk, talking

to talk, talking

Correct Answer:verlieren,to lose, losing

to lose, losing

Q4.
Order the words to say: 'I am afraid of animals, especially cats.'

1 - ich
2 - habe
3 - Angst
4 - vor Tieren
5 - besonders
6 - vor Katzen

Q5.
Write in English: 'es ist ein einfaches Spiel'.

Correct Answer: it is an easy game, it's an easy game, it is a simple game, it's a simple game

Q6.
Write in German: 'I do my homework'.

Correct Answer: ich mache meine Hausaufgaben

Assessment exit quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
Match up the sentence halves.

Correct Answer:Wie,alt bist du?

alt bist du?

Correct Answer:Wann,hast du Geburtstag?

hast du Geburtstag?

Correct Answer:Warum,lernst du Englisch?

lernst du Englisch?

Correct Answer:Wo,wohnst du?

wohnst du?

Correct Answer:Wie viele,Bücher kaufst du?

Bücher kaufst du?

Correct Answer:Was,hast du gesagt?

hast du gesagt?

Q2.
Order the words to form a sentence. Emphasise the adverb of time.

1 - heute
2 - bleibe
3 - ich
4 - mit
5 - Freunden
6 - zu
7 - Hause

Q3.
Write in English: 'ich benutze gern mein Handy'.

Correct Answer: I like using my phone, I like to use my phone, I like using my mobile phone, I like to use my mobile phone, I like using my mobile

Q4.
Write in German: 'I like swimming'. Use an adverb.

Correct Answer: ich schwimme gern

Additional material

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